Heal My Wounds
by Hibisha
Summary: A fateful encounter between one who wants to destroy all he holds precious and one who's helpless to do so leads to a game not all are willing to play. (Sarumi, Mikorei, Izoseri)
1. Chapter 00: Prologue

Hibisha: Guess who's still alive?

TOBF: You're never getting free of exams are you.

Hibisba: Never. University is exhausting. Anyways, I don't own K project. Enjoy!

* * *

 **Prologue**

Blood poured out of the stab wound in his shoulder, rain beating down on his back, his body throbbing in pain, making him grit his teeth as he clasped a hand tightly around the wound to try and make it stop bleeding.

 _Stupid JUNGLE. Stupid HOMRA. Stupid Misaki._

It was all his fault.

This alliance, this-this _friendship,_ he hated it.

Snorting, he dragged his body through the alleyway painfully, feeling his body go numb. Not entirely sure if it was because of blood loss or because it was so cold.

But then again, he was always cold.

A renewed wave of dizziness made him falter in his steps and his body lurched sideways to slam against the wall, making him whimper as he felt his body be consumed in pain upon impact. Using it as support, he slid down to the ground. His breaths became labored as his vision began to blur out. Digging his hand inside his jacket, he began to feel for around his PDA. He had to send for help-there was no other way around it.

A small smirk graced his lips.

 _Help_? What a joke.

Not finding the device where he had placed it, he figured he had probably lost it during the fight with those ignorant buffoons from JUNGLE. Tch.

Honestly, Munakata was probably going to have to physically restrain him from placing a knife in Hisui Nagare's chest himself.

Grimacing in pain, he forced himself on his feet once more and began to move, trying to see through the curtains of rain that surrounded him. A particularly cold gust of wind cut through his clothes like hot knife on butter and made him shiver horrendously. Dark spots began to dance about his field of vision as Fushimi sank to his hands and knees in front of the figure standing before him which had seemingly materialized out of nowhere.

More of JUNGLE?

The corner of his lips tugged upwards as he stared up at the woman standing before him, holding an umbrella.

 _So this is how it ends huh?_ Done in by a girl after being mobbed by several members of the Green clan, trying to kill him in order to claim the 'reward' - a fixed amount of points in a game.

What an amazing society.

Staring into the eyes of his probable, soon to be executioner, he sneered.

"Tch. Isn't it time you killed me already?" he rasped out, suddenly finding it hard to talk as a sudden pressure developed in his chest as if someone had placed a thousand bricks on his sternum, "Or are you waiting for me to bleed to death, you sick psycho bitch?" Her eyes widened before she shook her head vehemently and reached out a hand, offering him a small hesitant smile, her eyes reflecting an emotion which did not sit well with him.

She was offering help.

She was offering _him_ help.

Anger bubbled inside his chest as a cruel laugh made past his lips. He glared at her, opening his mouth to let out a torrent of insults which would make her leave, make her go running in the opposite direction, straight home and cry herself to sleep. But another sharp pain shot up his spine, making him give out a small grunt of pain.

Brown eyes fixated themselves on him as the umbrella was flung away and suddenly he found himself being pulled up by a pair of steady hands as one arm wrapped around his waist, carefully avoiding the crimson soaked areas in case she accidentally brushed his wounds. Swinging his uninjured arm around her shoulders, she pulled him up.

He could feel her knees buckle under the sudden added weight but she managed to hold out.

He hated it.

He hated her for wanting to help him like this.

He hated people like her-people who looked at him with _pity_. Who wanted to help him so they could go to bed with a sense of _heroism_ infused in their blood.

He was sick of it.

He was sick of everything.

But before he could cruelly rebuke her, his body sagged against her as the last of his strength left him and he blacked out.

* * *

Hibisha: Well i hope you guys liked it!


	2. Chapter 01: Search

Hibisha: Well, here we go. And update within reasonable time.

TOBF: ... No comment.

Hibisha: Okay, so lets get on with it! I kind of added insight on so as to why Mikoto is alive and well. Plus, we see Sarumi angst (even if it's like a very tiny bit of it.)

Oh, and also this is all set up during K: Missing Kings, so yeah, I thought I should just mention that.

* * *

 **Chapter 01: Search**

"What? Fushimi-san is missing!?" Akiyama exclaimed, his face gone pale. Benzai sighed and gave him a curt nod. The two stood at the entrance of the dorms, Akiyama having just come back from his night shift, patrolling the grounds near the bar HOMRA.

Ever since Anna had been kidnapped by JUNGLE, the Red King had stomped out his pride and had requested the Blue King for his help. Thus, the two clans had been working together to find out where the Greens had taken her. Mikoto Suoh and Munakata Reisi had seemingly put aside their differences to form a small alliance in order to ensure the safety of Anna and also to get to the bottom of JUNGLE's latest activities.

Or so it seemed.

While both clans had agreed to follow their respective Kings' decision, neither clan wanted to work together. Akiyama himself had just returned from a patrol which he had been assigned to along with Chitose Yo from Homra. It had driven him to the edge of near insanity as Chitose didn't seem to have any restraint around the members of the fairer sex and kept disappearing off to chat up to the nearest thing with a pair of breasts.

How Homra even functioned with these idiots around was a mystery to him.

"He never returned from his patrol two days ago." Hidaka's voice pulled him out of his musings and he turned to look at the other man as he came out from the building, looking agitated beyond belief. "We traced his PDA-with a lot of difficulties let me tell you, that kid has like state of the art anti-spyware and whatnots. Anyways, this morning Captain and Lieutenant went to see what happened and..." His voice trailed off and his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"And?" Akiyama prodded, suddenly feeling unsettled. Why hadn't he heard of this if it happened two days ago?

"It was destroyed." Benzai finished with a grim look, "Totally shattered and all. It was a wonder how we even managed to get signals off that thing. It was barely working- only the screen-or what was left of it, was lit up. We couldn't access it or do anything else with it."

Cold dread washed over his body as Akiyama tried to wrap his mind around the fact that their third in command, Fushimi Saruhiko, was...gone.

"Captain has put up a Code Red situation." another voice cut in and all three turned to look at Kamo and Domyoji approaching, looking grim-something which didn't suit the later's face at all. "But only for a day or so. He plans on continuing the investigation concerning Homra's kidnapped strain." The way he had said Homra made Akiyama's eyes widen and caused Benzai to give him a sharp look.

"This just occurred to me...but who was on patrol with Fushimi-san?"

"..."

Akiyama looked from one member to another, noting how all their eyes narrowed and how their fists clenched simultaneously. Domyoji's green eyes darkened considerably and Benzai shot his colleague a worried look. Akiyama felt his curiosity surface.

"Who-" he began but Hidaka spoke up before he could repeat Benzai's question.

"Yata Misaki from HOMRA."

* * *

"Yata-san, it's getting late, we should head back." Kamamoto tried again for the umpteenth time to get the reckless auburn haired man to return back to the bar. Yata ignored him once more and doubled up his pace, leaving the blonde behind him. The crowd bustled around him, paying him no heed as he skateboarded around, eyes scanning every alley way he passed.

Go back to the bar? How could he?

Saruhiko was still missing.

And it was all his fault.

Not that anyone blamed him for it, he knew. Right from the start, both third in commands had made it clear that neither had any plans of working with each other. So when they had been ambushed by those JUNGLE members, Yata had clearly expected Saruhiko to hold his own- which he did. What he didn't expect was that, after he had deflected one of the knives their assailants had thrown at him, one would go off to stab Saruhiko in the shoulder.

 _There had been so much blood._

Fear clouded his mind and he pushed forward on the asphalt harder than necessary, moving forward at a ridiculous speed.

Saruhiko had not known where the knife had come from. He had immediately assumed his own lack of vigilance was at fault. After all, he hadn't been expecting one from Yata's direction.

 _The bleeding wouldn't stop._

Guilt consumed him as he came to a halt, right in front of the alley where the confrontation had taken place.

He should have never left that idiot alone. He shouldn't have gone along with Saruhiko's idea to split up.

Split up.

A low humorless laugh escaped his mouth before he could stop himself.

Saruhiko's idea to split up. _Always_ to split up.

 _Split up._

 _Walk away._

 _Destroy._

Ever since the Ashinaka High School incident, the two clans had been slightly less aggravated towards each other. At one point, Yata had even fantasized about re-establishing his friendship with Saruhiko.

But Saruhiko had a completely different viewpoint.

On several occasions the blue had very loudly voiced his opinion about the stupid alliance they had formed- about Homra, about family and friendship.

Sometimes the Vanguard wondered how he could get away with bad mouthing his superior's orders like that but then again the Blue King had always been a bit too lenient with Saruhiko- something that even Yata had not been oblivious to.

And now that cocky bastard was missing.

Angrily, he punched one of the walls next to him, feeling skin tear around his knuckles but not caring, choosing to ignore the sharp sting of pain.

"That bastard!" he hissed out, "Where are you hiding, you stupid monkey!" Pressing his back against one of the walls, he slid down in utter defeat, pulling his beanie low over his eyes so no one would notice how his eyes had become moist.

 _Saru...where are you?_

* * *

"Munakata." Mikoto lumbered awkwardly in the doorway of the other's office as he tried to think up of something to say to the Blue that would make him less tense.

"What is it Mikoto?" Munakata asked, giving him a pointed look. Mikoto shrugged. "Can I come in?' he asked. Munakata's amethyst eyes closed as he gave him permission with a nod of his head. Mikoto lazily made his way inside, cautious of the other's mood.

Contrary to popular belief, Mikoto wasn't completely oblivious to other people's feelings and did in fact care about others when they were hurting.

Especially if they were hurting because of him.

When Munakata had slayed the Colorless King before Mikoto could get to him, he had saved the Red King's life-at the cost of his own Sword of Damocles. A huge crack had appeared in the Blue King's sword, a burden that probably haunted the Blue every night. If there was one thing Mikoto regretted more than anything, it was putting Munakata in that position.

The death of the Colorless King acted as a catalyst for many events.

Munakata's sword got damaged.

The Silver King had disappeared along with the Gold King.

Soon after, Anna was kidnapped by JUNGLE.

And now Fushimi had vanished.

No wonder everyone had been on the edge lately.

Especially Munakata.

True, even though Fushimi had been his own clansman at one point, they had never been all that close but Mikoto had seen how attached the Blue King had gotten to his third in command.

The kind of attachment Munakata had never shown any one ever before.

A scowl set itself on his face before he could stop it.

Honestly, getting jealous about this right now hardly seemed right.

Especially since Fushimi was nowhere to be found.

"Munakata, my boys couldn't find him." he said, hating the helplessness that came with the words. He wondered what that boy was doing and how he was handling everything and if he really had been captured, how he was faring and if his captors were treating him right.

According to Yata, he had been in a very bad shape when they had been separated.

Mikoto didn't hate Fushimi. Nor did he ever blame the kid for leaving. Mikoto hadn't been blind and even though he had hoped it was just his imagination, he had seen how terrified Fushimi had been of him. He had never dubbed him as disloyal for having these sort of feelings because hey, everyone had their flaws right? Especially since his aura had accepted him and his aura never lied. It always chose those who were loyal and Fushimi had been loyal.

"Ah I see." came a small reply. Munakata's eyes were fixed on the puzzle in front of him, eyes wandering around it aimlessly, as if it held the answers he needed. Mikoto felt something deep inside him clench painfully.

"We'll find him Munakata." he said quietly, hoping to bring about some peace to the man in front of him, "We just need to keep searching."

"I'm going to call off the search soon." Munakata suddenly declared, running a hand through his raven locks. Mikoto took a step back in surprise.

"What?"

"I'm going to call off the search soon." Munakata repeated, "Our main priority right now should be locating Anna and figuring JUNGLE's plans for her. Once she is secured I shall arrange for-"

"Munakata." At the sound of his name, Munakata's head snapped up so that his eyes met the other's. For the first time, Mikoto could see helplessness in Munakata's eyes.

"It's okay. He's going to be okay." Was all Mikoto could say before Munakata nodded at him, offering him a small smile.

"I hope so Mikoto." he whispered, sounding a bit lost. "I truly hope so."

* * *

 _They were on the school's roof top, with their backs pressed against the railing. Misaki sat next to him, his head leaned against his shoulder as they listened to some music through his iPod. Suddenly, Misaki pulled away and looked up at the wide expanse of the cloudless blue sky above them._

 _"Hey Fushimi!"_

 _"Hmmm?"_

 _"Don't you wish the world would just blow up one day?' Fushimi started. This was-_

 _Yata continued as if he hadn't seen Fushumi's reaction. "Think about it, the world could just be gone! Poof~! And then we could create our own small world!"_

 _Fushimi felt his blue eyes widen. This was his Misaki. The one who still thought the world of him. The one who's universe revolved around him. Misaki was looking back at him with an innocent grin._

 _"Yeah, it...would...be cool." he finally managed to get out, focusing his attention on a button on his uniform, fiddling with it. His mind was trying to process what was going on. Had he gone back in time? Was this really happening?_

 ** _Was this really his Misaki?_**

 _"But then you'd go ahead and destroy that!" His head snapped up as he saw Misaki's happy expressions morph into those of pure hatred._

 _"You'd go ahead and destroy everything, wouldn't you, you traitor!"_

Fushimi sat up, drenched in cold sweat, panting as his eyes adjusted to his surrounding. A small noise on his left made him turn sharply, catching movements in his periphery, body going tense for an oncoming attack.

An oncoming attack-which never came.

"Hey." the girl in front of him said, looking at him and grinning widely, "Glad to see you're finally up and about!"

* * *

Hibisha: Well, thanks for reading I hope you enjoyed it! 3 Drop a review! And follow and fav~


	3. Chapter 02: Kiss

Hibisha: Wow. That was longer than usual. I'm sorry for taking such a long time but I had to write this twice. First time I wrote half of it and my laptop shut down. Then I started working on it in university but the computers over there suck. Finally I managed to get my hands on my brother's laptop and wrote this whole thing again.

Anyway a quick mention: This is not a FushimiXOC story. Not at any point. Not even as a drunken one night stand. Just saying.

Also, once again I'm sorry for the delay in update but like I said, laptop's down-again. I'm going to try to get another chapter up soon though.

* * *

 **Chapter 02: Kiss**

Fushimi looked around the room to take in his surroundings. Apart from the bed and the dresser, the room was oddly bare. Dust covered the floor so it was probably safe to assume the room had not been used in a long time. The girl, who had been staring at herself in the mirror, had greeted him, handed him his glasses and had slipped out of the room – as if random strangers woke up in her house on a daily basis.

Really- was there no end to the idiots in this world? Grimacing, he pushed himself up and pulled off the covers to assess the damage done to his body. A deep purple bruising on his ribcage made him wince internally. If he didn't know any better, that looked as if-

"You fractured a rib and lost a lot of blood." His head jerked in the direction of the girl who had once again, materialized in front of him soundlessly, "Also, you had a mild concussion and the stab wound on your shoulder was kinda deep so I hope you don't mind the stitches. Don't move around too much. Oh and there was a scar on your left clavicle that was kind of infec-"

"Who are you?" Fushimi cut in with a scowl. " _More importantly, where are we?"_ The room looked oddly familiar. The girl gave him a light grin, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly.

"Ah-I was on my way to the hospital after I found you – which by the way is further away than I thought- Anyway, I was dragging you to the hospital and boy, you don't weigh all that much, have you been eating properly?" Fushimi could only stare as the girl prattled on, making ridiculous hand gestures. "You kind of look and feel starved – not that I felt you up in your sleep or something like that - I'm not a pervert! Just that you were bleeding and I had to check for injuries and you look malnutrition and oh my God, starved reminds me, you have no idea how hard it was to get your half unconscious body to take in something. It was like-"

"Why am I not in the hospital?" Fushimi hated hospitals. Loathed them even. The strong smell of disinfectant made him want to puke-but at least had he been in the hospital, the Blue King could have traced his whereabouts. Also- "What date is it?"

"You can ask me how long you've been unconscious, I won't judge you or lie you know." Fushimi stared at the brunette who still had that easy going smile planted on her face.

 _Annoying._

"Will you shut up and just tell me what I asked?" he snapped. The brunette rolled her eyes and put on a look of feigned hurt.

"Rude. Is that really the way to talk to a person who has been taking care of you for two days?" Fushimi stiffened momentarily before straightening himself up to the fullest.

"I didn't ask you to do that." He shot back icily, giving her the most lethal look he had. The girl didn't even flinch.

"Oooh. Cold aren't we? Anyway, are you allergic to anything?" The random question threw him off. He blinked at the other occupant of the room who was watching him expectantly.

"What?"

Ah yes, ever the eloquent speaker he was. The girl tapped her foot patiently against the floor, rocking her body.

"Allergies." She hummed out, "Are you allergic to anything?" His mind was spinning.

"What do any of my allergies have to do with you?" he demanded, ignoring the raging headache that was slowly developing. The girl beamed at him.

Really, was this girl planning on holding him captive? Was she nuts?

It would be just his luck if she turned out to be.

"I was gonna make you something to eat since all you've had for two days is water and some fruit juice." Fushimi didn't know what was worse. That he'd been down for two days or that someone had forced fruit into his body while he was down.

"You don't have to do anything." He muttered, "I'm leaving." Getting to his feet, he felt the earth beneath him shift. Stumbling a bit, he gritted his teeth and forced himself upright.

This was not the first time he had gone without food and goddamit if he was going to collapse for the second time round. In front of the same person. The girl hadn't moved from her spot from beside the doorway. Shrugging, she turned around and walked out, that stupid grin still frozen in place.

"Suit yourself," she called back over her shoulder, "But just to let you know, a couple of people outside came banging on the front door looking for 'a young dude with black hair and a nasty attitude' and I'm guessing you don't wanna run into them when you're like that. I just wanted to make sure you didn't get mobbed and died on your way back to your house or the hospital. Such a shame it would be after all the time I spent keeping you from going into the light. But if you wanna go out that's fine too." Fushimi scowled. So [JUNGLE] was still hunting him down?

His eyes narrowed at the doorway.

Did he even have a choice?

 _Annoying._

Making his way through the hallway, he was once again hit by a wave of nostalgia.

Why? Why was this place so familiar?

Dust covered most of the flooring and most of the doors were locked. It wasn't until he reached a certain room which was unlocked did his mouth turn dry and his feet gave way beneath him.

His body shook as he focussed on trying to keep his breathing even, his vision blurring for a moment.

A hysterical laugh forced itself out of his lips as he got to his feet.

Really what were the odds? To end up in _that_ house again? He was still laughing when he felt a hand being placed on his shoulder. In a flash, he had the person pinned to the wall by the throat.

"I'm guessing you finally cracked?" the girl asked cheerfully, ignoring the fact that a person was probably chocking her. Fushimi's grip relaxed. Shuffling away from her, his arm dropped to his side as he glared at her.

"I'm leaving." He said and turned around, making his way towards the staircase. Down the stairs and out the front door. He smirked. The house hadn't changed a bit since he had abandoned it. Still the same cold place it always had been.

"Wait!" he halted in his steps, cursing every deity out there who had put him in this situation. Why couldn't the girl just disappear? A pair of brown eyes blinked at him as she offered him a PDA. He raised an eyebrow.

"And what," he drawled, "am I supposed to do with this?" The girl smiled.

"You should call up a friend to-hey don't walk away! I'm serious!" Fushimi muted out the rest of her rant as he walked over to the main door and yanked it open. Turning back to look at her, he smirked.

"Friends are for the weak" he said offhandedly, "Also if I were you, I'd move out. This place is full of nasty evil ghosts." Slamming the door behind him, he made his way back to the Scepter 4 headquarters.

* * *

"It seems that HOMRA's second in command had some information on the strain's whereabouts. Also, we've narrowed the area down to this neighbourhood." Munakata stood in the middle of the room as his subordinates worked around him, his eyes focussed on the large screen mounted on the wall across him.

"Thank you Enomoto-kun. Your work is very much appreciated." He nodded, "Put down that with the rest of the information and we'll analyse it later. It seems-" the rest of his words were cut off by a snort.

"Honestly, I go off for two days and this place is in shambles." Several heads turned in the direction of the door. All activity ceased and everyone's breath got caught in their throats. There, standing and looking as if he were about to kneel over any second, was their infamous hidden weapon user.

"Fushimi-kun…." Munakata said, eyes brightening up. That was all that was needed to break the silence that had engulfed the place. Chairs were pushed back as several pairs of feet rushed to Fushimi's side, demanding to know where he was hurt, what had happened and where he had been. Munakata stepped forward and a hush fell amongst them once more. The crowd parted as the Blue King strode forward and stared down at his third in command, who had been forced into a seat.

"Welcome back Fushimi-kun." He said lightly, his eyes quickly taking in the state of the young man in front of him, "It seems you got into a bit of a hassle while on patrol the other night. I assume you managed to get out of it okay?" The other clicked his tongue.

"Tch-I'm here aren't I?" he muttered looking away. A small chuckle left the older man's lips.

"Yes it appears so. I expect you to give me a full report on where you were but I'm sure you already knew that." Fushimi clicked his tongue once more.

"Right now?" He had expected to be given a bit of time to come up with a suitable story. There was no way he was telling the truth. The walk from his childhood home to the Scepter 4 building was relatively short and had taken him twenty minutes in his current condition. All throughout the walk, he hadn't been able to focus on much except hiding and dodging multiple people from [JUNGLE].

"Is there a problem?" Everyone in the room, held their breaths as the witnessed a stare-down between their King and Fushimi. The younger of the two scowled.

"Not really but I think we have bigger issues to deal with. That red clansman is still missi-" A sharp stab of pain made him cut off whatever he had planned on saying and he hissed involuntarily, wishing he had gone back to the dorms instead.

"Awashima-san take Fushimi-kun to the infirmary." His head snapped up and he glared the man before him.

"I'm fine." He muttered and as if to prove it, pushed himself on his feet. Awashima Seri made a move to force him back down, because really, he looked as if he had died twice and resurrected but the Blue King held her back.

"Really? Pardon me for saying this, but Fushimi-kun you look simply terrible. May I inquire what happened?" Fushimi's eyes met his before he broke off again. Clearly, his King wasn't going to let it go.

"Tch-I've been unconscious for two days, have had severe blood loss and had a mild concussion. Also there's a wound on my shoulder that needed stitches and I'm not sure what that idiot did but it's managing to hold out. On top of all that I have a fractured rib. There! Are you happy now?" Seri made a noise that clearly indicated she was feeling torn between hitting on the head for not mentioning it as soon as he came or mothering him till he was better. Munakata raised an eyebrow.

"Idiot? Pardon me for asking, but were you with someone these past two days?" Fushimi chose not to answer that one and opted to glare at the floor. The sense of helplessness was creeping up on him making him cold all over. A chill seeped in and settled in his bones. Munakata stared at him for a few more minutes before his gaze softened.

"It's good to have you back Fushimi-kun." He said, smiling widely, "Awashima san, make sure he goes to the infirmary will you?"

"Yes sir!" The blonde woman saluted at began to usher the boy out of the office. Once she had confirmed that Fushimi was being taken care of, she pulled out her cell phone. Pressing the first number on her speed dial, she waited for the person on the other end to pick up.

"Hello Seri-chan! What's up?"

"Ah, I just thought I should inform you Fushimi has returned."

"Has he now? Is he okay? Ah wait," the bartender's voice was muffled as he yelled at someone on his side, "OI YATA-CHAN! FUSHIMI-SAN'S BACK SO YOU CAN STOP MOPING AROUND NOW! Ah sorry," he was back on the phone, probably ignoring the stammering of his fellow clansman, "I had to tell him. He's been scaring away my customers with his mood lately…"

"They used to be friends if I heard correctly."

"It's complicated."

"…I see. Nonetheless, I thought I should inform you. Also, we've narrowed down the parameters involving Anna's case."

"Thank you for your help Seri-chan."

"…You're welcome. I have to go. I will message you if anything else turns up."

"Always the cold one aren't you. Goodbye then."

"Goodbye."

* * *

Mikoto slowly made his way back to the bar from Scepter 4's building. The red head had spent the past hour cooped up inside, talking to Munakata, deciding their best course of action. Something that would help them find both their missing clansmen. Of course, Munakata kept giving Anna preference over Fushimi which gave Mikoto a sinking feeling that indeed this was not the first time Fushimi had gone missing. True, even in his HOMRA days, Fushimi had often gone off on his own but that was only when Kusanagi had sent him to do something undercover-or something that was very dangerous and probably life threatening. Something he'd keep Yata away from at all costs.

Even if the price was his own head.

Mikoto had never actually cared where Fushimi had disappeared off to but seeing Munakata fret over it made him wonder whether he ought to have. It wasn't that Mikoto didn't care about his clansmen but rather Fushimi had not wanted him to care. The boy had always done things alone.

 _The bell above the bar's main entrance chimed as the place was suddenly filled with various members of [HOMRA]. Mikoto, who had been comfortably sleeping on the couch, glared at them through one eye blearily. Totsuka Tatara gave him a silly grin, his whole face lighting up with joy._

 _"King!" he exclaimed, "Guess where we all went today?"_

 _Mikoto did not know nor did he care. As long as they all returned home alive with all their limbs intact, nothing else mattered._

 _Sitting up, he yawned as the others scattered around the place, assuming different positions all around. One glance told him that Kusanagi was not there and thus the very obvious boisterous display before him. Izumo was most probably either at some dealers, buying more wine or on some underground mission which he did not share with Mikoto-mostly because Mikoto didn't completely understand what the other man was doing._

 _A small tug on the sleeve of his jacket made him look over at the young strain who had taken her place next to him. Anna gave him a blank look before she turned and stared at Yata. Then she looked back at him._

 _"The seeds of despair have begun to take root." she said solemnly. Mikoto raised an eyebrow. What?_

 _Before he could ask the young girl to explain, Totsuka came and plopped himself on the couch opposite to him._

 _"We went to the amusement park again." he chirped. Mikoto raised an eyebrow, pushing the cryptic message at the back of his mind-let Izumo deal with that when he returns._

 _"Without me?" he teased. Suddenly, all the chatter died down and all the smiles were replaced with looks of panic and alarm. Mikoto smiled bitterly. Right, he couldn't even make jokes about this anymore. Not when he was the King and they were the clansmen. The fear of accidentally upsetting their King was too great making them forget at times that Mikoto was also a human._

 _A human who felt incredibly lonely all of a sudden._

 _"I'm kidding." he said, stretching a bit. Relief flooded every face around him, making him wince internally. Did they really believe he would throw a fit if he wasn't invited to their stupid day out?_

 _"You were sleeping and Anna didn't want to disturb you." Yata supplied, still a bit pink in the face. Mikoto shrugged._

 _Anna once again tugged at his sleeve. This time, he did not turn to face her, and glance at her from the corner of his eye. The young girl was clutching something-no doubt a marble- close to her her chest, her other hand still lingering on his arm. Her face, which usually showed no emotions was filled with worry._

 _"Mikoto," she called out softly, looking incredibly worried, "The seeds of despair have begun to take root." Mikoto blinked as the young strain got up and made her way_ _to the empty bar and sat down, placing all her marbles in front of her._

 _The seeds of despair have begun to take root._

 _Empty bar._

 _Empty._

 _"Oi," he called out, once more effectively silencing the whole bar, "Where's Fushimi?" Yata shrugged._

 _"Haven't seen that asshole since yesterday." He scowled, "All he sent me was a text last night telling me he's gonna be late and he must have come home after I went to bed. He left before I woke up." Totsuka frowned._

 _"Could it be that Fuhsimi-kun never came home last night?" Yata's eyes widened before he swore loudly._

 _"That absolute-"_

 _"Saruhiko is in trouble." All eyes turned to look at the young girl amongst them who was staring fixedly on the marbles, "Saruhiko is in trouble but he does not need us." Totsuka got up and walked over to the girl._

 _"Now, now. What's going on in that head of yours Anna-chan?" Red eyes roamed the bar, wandering over one face to another before settling on Mikoto._

 _"Saruhiko is red. But he is a tragic red." Yata's eyes were growing wide in alarm._

 _"O-Oi! What's going on?"_

 _"Saruhiko-"_

 _"Yes?" All faces turned to look at the boy who had materialized out of nowhere. Fushimi raised an eyebrow at all of them, looking a bit perplexed as he went over to his usual spot on the bar._

 _"SARU! YOU IDIOT, WHERE WERE YOU?" Yata yelled, looking clearly relieved. Fushimi shrugged._

 _"Can't say, it's a secret." Mikoto opened his mouth to ask –demand whatever, the teen to spill but Anna had moved up to the dark haired gloomy boy. Holding out her hand, she gave Fushimi a hesitant smile._

 _"Don't disappear." Fushimi sighed and looked away, muttering under his breath. Anna smiled and Mikoto wondered why it looked like it was the saddest thing he had seen on her face in a while._

* * *

Hibisha: I hope you enjoyed it. Drop a review!


	4. Chapter 03: Destroy

This chapter might or might not give you a head ache depending on what kind of bullshit you're used to when it comes to texting.

"All characters in this are fictional and any resemblance to anyone alive or dead is purely coincidental." - said I as I totally copied off my own friend's style of texting.

^Glad we got that out of the way. Seriously though, decoding my friend's texts is like trying to find Atlantis.

This chapter is bound to be a bit boring in the start. But it'll get better as it progresses on I swear.

* * *

 **Chapter 03: Destroy**

* * *

 **~ WELCOME TO JUNGLE ~**

Where we take you to a new world!

Do you wish to join us? **Sign up** **.**

Already a member? Welcome back friend!

 **[Sign In]**

 **Join Us**

* * *

 **USERNAME: RED AVENGER**

 **PASSWORD: *************

Forgot password? Click **here.**

 **[OKAY]** **CANCEL**

* * *

 **PLEASE WAIT**

 **҉**

 **LOADING**

* * *

 **~ WELCOME TO JUNGLE ~**  
 **  
**  
 **YOU HAVE 6 NEW NOTIFICATIONS**

 **Congratulations RED, you have now been promoted to "L RANK."! Go to the mission's board to see new missions unlocked!**

 **New achievement unlocked: MASTER ARCHER!**

 **CHAT ROOM: TEAM YATA 3**

 **《Yata'sGURL707 changed group name to "TEAM YATA 3"》**

 **Yata'sGURL707:** Hey babz! Lixten! We wuz talkin bout u 2 da admin and he said you were awsum last nite!

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** lulz Sayuri-chan. Wassup wid dat handle?

 **BlueGazel** : What on earth are you all typing? Need I toss another dictionary at you all?

 **SevenSeasAcross:** I miss u all sooo much! /3 i h8 America. It suxs here widout u all. cant evn level up cuz there r no missions hre :'(

 **Yata'sGURL707:** There there ill share my nxt mission point wid u

 **SevenSeasAcross:** :) 3 ily

 **BlueGazel:** Where is our captain anyways?

 **Yata'sGURL707:** Ssshttaaap callin him captain sounds creepy af.

 **BlueGazel:** HAVE YOU SEEN YOUR USER NAME?

 **Yata'sGURL707** : Pft ur jelly cuz he luvs meh.

 **BlueGazel** : A) I'm not gay. I have a girlfriend. B) You're hardly someone I'd be jealous about. C) He isn't interested in you because he has someone else in his life right now. And also, he's online now.

 **《RedAvenger has logged in.》**

 **《RedAvenger has changed the group name to "WTF GUYS?"》**

 **RedAvenger:** You guys! We're supposed to be anonymous on this site! If my brother finds out I'm on this site, he's gonna assassinate me!

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** Big words 4 tiny shrimp. Fuu-chan thro a dictionary u?

 **BlueGazel:** That's Fuusuke to you and no, he's just getting into habit for a *certain someone.*

 **RedAvenger:** Gazel! NO! YOU PROMISED!

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** Well nw i wanna noe.

 **Yata'sGURL707:** WHO DAT HOE?

 **BlueGazel: ...**

 **BlueGazel:** I'm surprised you didn't tell off Sayuri for her username. *disappointed*

 **RedAvenger:** Hmm?

 **SevenSeasAcross:** UR. NEW. GIRLFRIEND. WHO IS SHE?

 **《Yata'sGURL707 has logged off.》**

 **《RainbowMonkeyLovesYou has logged in》**

 **RainbowMonkeyLovesYou:** Yo guys! What's new?

 **SevenSeasAcross:** Minoru has a girlfriend.

 **RainbowMOnkeyLovesYou:** OMG POOR SAYURI!

 **RedAvenger:** I DO NOT HAVE A GIRL FRIEND AND WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH SAYURI'S USERNAME?

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** Ah! Poor Sayuri-chan.

 **BlueGazel:** Hey Tadashi!

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** Yes Fuu-chan?

 **BlueGazel:** I'd kill you but I need your help so ugh.

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** THE GREAT LORD FUUSUKE NEEDS MY HELP?

 **BlueGazel:** Don't make me change my mind. JUST SHOW UP AT THE MUSIC ROOM TOMORROW.

 **RainbowMonkeyLovesYou:** MINORU! YOU CAN'T JUST DROP A BOMB LIKE THAT AND RUN AWAY!

 **RedAvenger:** Erm- sorry guys I'm a bit busy atm.

 **SevenSeasAcross:** Talkin to ur new gf?

 **RedAvenger:** OMG NO GUYS! IT'S JUST A NEW FRIEND!

 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** Juxt a frnd he says.

 **RainbowMonkeyLovesYou:** Minoru! :D Congrats on the level up man!

 **RedAvenger** : THANKS!

 **SevenSeasAcross** : Cant beliv ur alrdy L rank.

 **CR ZyLUn Tic** : he desrvd it! Didya see him take dwn those homra supprters?

 **BlueGazel** : Minoru was seriously cool going up against those hooligans.

 **SevenSeasAcross** : I cant undrstnd y Azusa didnt cum dat day?

 **CR ZyLUn Tic** : I told you guys…I was grounded.

* * *

 **Chat 》Options 》Group 》Settings**

 **Save**

 **Delete**

 **[Mute group]**

* * *

 **Are you sure you wish to mute this group?**

You will no longer receive notifications until you unmute.

 **[Yes] No**

* * *

 **Notications (9)**

 _BlackBird has accepted your friend request._

 _BlackBird has joint your party: [Deathly Duo] [Members: 2]_

 _BlackBird completed mission 8._

 _BlackBird has now reached L-RANK! Send him a gift!_

 _BlackBird is now your selected Partner._

 _BlackBird requests help on (5) missions. [accept] [decline]_

 _Yata'sGURL707 has changed her name to BrokenHearted101_

 _BlueGazel asked you for 20 JUNGLE points. [send]_

 _SevenSeasAcross challenged you to a friendly duel. [accept] [decline]_

* * *

 **《PRIVATE CHAT: BlackBird》**

 **BlackBird** : Hey!

 **RedAvenger** : Yo! Sorry I didn't come last night. Had to take care of some people in my neighbourhood.

 **BlackBird** : It's okay Minoru. I don't mind.

 **RedAvenger** : :D Listen, about those missions. Let's get together late and sort through them okay? We'll move up to N-Rank soon enough if this keeps up.

 **BlackBird** : Sorry Minoru. You know I can't. Dad won't allow me to go off somewhere alone.

 **RedAvenger** : You won't be alone! I'll be here!

 **BlackBird:** He doesn't know you. And my Uncle recently told dad that we should all stay on guard.

 **RedAvenger** : tsk.

 **BlackBird** : I'm sorry. I'll work on the other missions if you like.

 **RedAvenger** : It's okay. I wasn't bothered about the missions. I just really wanted to meet you.

 **BlackBird** : I really want to meet you too. Hopefully we'll be able to soon.

 **RedAvenger** : I HOPE SO! HOW AM I GONNA INTRODUCE YOU TO ALL MY FRIENDS IF I DON'T EVEN KNOW YOUR NAME?

 **RedAvenger** : ON THAT NOTE, YOU ALREADY KNOW MINE SO WHY ON EARTH HAVEN'T YOU TOLD ME YOURS?

 **BlackBird** : Minoru, did you see the new missions?

 **RedAvenger:** DON'T YOU CHANGE THE SUBJECT!

 **RedAvenger** : Wait a minute! What the hell is this?

 **BlackBird** : This seems dangerous. I'm scared.

 **RedAvenger** : Don't be! I'll always be there to protect you!

 **BlackBird** : …

 **BlackBird** : I trust you Minoru.

 **RedAvenge** r: YOU BETTER! WE'RE A TEAM NOW!

 **BlackBird** : Yeah. We are.

 **RedAvenger** : Oh my mum's calling me for dinner. I'll come back later okay?

 **BlackBird** : Okay. I'll be here at 10 after dinner as well.

 **RedAvenger** : Later.

 **BlackBird** : …

 **BlackBird** : Minoru? You there?

 **RedAvenger** : Yeah?

 **BlackBird** : I…I'll meet up with you tomorrow if you want.

 **RedAvenger** : WHAT? NO WAY!

 **BlackBird** : I'm sure if I beg and plead, Uncle will say yes. If not, I can always ask Ko-chan to come with me.

 **RedAvenger** : Ko-chan?

 **BlackBird** : He's a friend of Uncle's.

 **RedAvenger:** OKAY THAT'LL BE AWESOME! LET ME KNOW BY TONIGHT OMG I CAN'T WAIT!

 **BlackBird** : Don't choke on your food.

 **BlackBird** : Bye.

 **《BlackBird has logged off.》**

 **《RedAvenger has logged off.》**

* * *

Minoru smiled as he shut off his console and put it on his nightstand. Getting out of bed, he stretched and made his way to the kitchen where his mum was making dinner. Yata Sakura smiled at her 11 year old son.

"You seem to be in a good mood. Something good happen?" Sakura inquired, her hazel eyes sparkling. Minoru nodded enthusiastically.

"I made a new friend." He responded, grabbing the plates to set on the table. His mother followed, holding a pot full of steaming rice. Placing the pot on the dining table, she raised an eyebrow at him.

"A new friend…?" she trailed off before a knowing look crossed her eyes, "Oh. Oh. OH!"

Minoru dropped the silverware he was holding onto the table, where it cluttered loudly.

"NO MOM!" he screeched, "It's just a friend I swear!" His mom grinned and raised her hands in mock surrender.

"I haven't even said a word." She responded, smirking lightly, "I just think it's cute that simply chatting with a friend makes you happy. So who is this new friend?" Minoru looked away, pouting.

"Not telling." He muttered. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Now really don't go hang out with trouble okay?" Minoru nodded. BlackBird hardly seemed like trouble. He was so shy.

Painfully shy.

And cute.

Minoru felt heat rush up to his cheeks as his heart began to pound loudly.

Fuck it.

Quickly snapping his attention away from that particular thought process, he looked up only to find his mother staring at him thoughtfully.

"Wh-what?" _There's no way mom knows what I'm thinking. It's not possible. No matter what Misa-nee said before._

Sakura smiled a bit.

"Nothing…just that for a minute, you reminded me of your older brother."

"Misa-nee?" Sakura snorted.

"Does he know you're calling him that?" Catching the crest fallen look on the younger's face, she immediately retraced her steps, "Ah, I was just thinking how he'd also start talking about his friend and then turn red like you just did."

"I DID NO- wait…are you talking about Saru?" His mom nodded, smiling at the thought of that gloomy boy.

"I…miss Misa-nee…and Saru. Do you think they'll ever come back here?" Sakura cast a sharp look at her son. Of course Minoru would miss his older brother. It was only right. Sometimes, she herself felt a sudden ache in her chest just to see that smile once more.

 _I'll protect you mum._

"They'll be back." She muttered, reaching out to ruffle his hair. "You mark my words."

She just hoped it would be soon.

* * *

Fushimi sighed as he pulled closed the door to the Blue Kings's office behind him. He had just delivered his reports on the whereabouts of Anna to Captain and while it had been _almost_ bearable – what was up with his Captain and ninjas? - he felt drained. Sluggishly making his way towards the Special Ops room, he threw himself into his highly uncomfortable wooden chair and sighed.

"Fushimi-san, how is your shoulder?" Looking up, he caught Akiyama's eye as his elder gave him a worried look. A quick glance around the room made it clear everyone was waiting for his response – all the while pretended they were doing their work.

What a bunch of morons.

"Are you guys paid to stand around chatting about non-sense because if that's the case, I'm asking Captain for a raise."

Not that it matters because what the fuck was he going to do with money?

"YOU STUPID SHITTY MONKEY! WHERE WERE YOU?"

Ah now there's a voice that didn't belong here. Fushimi turned to look at the doorway to see the red headed skater standing there, looking as if hell had personally delivered him to their doorstep. His clothes were rumpled and from the bags under his eyes, Fushimi guessed that he hadn't had much sleep.

Annoying.

"Misaki?" Fushimi didn't even have the energy to come up with a witty response. He was so shocked at seeing the other there.

Tch.

What a waste of his time.

Getting up, he sauntered over to the shorter male. All around him, the rest of his clan members were waiting with baited breaths as they watched the scene unfold before them

"What is Misaki doing here?" he asked, wanting nothing more than going back to his dorm room and sleeping off for a few days or so. Really, why was he so tired? He'd gotten enough rest seeing as he had been unconscious for two days and then had been made to stay in bed for a whole day until he had bodily threatened the doctor to give him a clean bill of health.

Misaki was still spluttering out excuses.

Tsk, so annoying.

"I'm going back to the dorms." He announced, walking out of the doors, "If Captain asks, I'm taking the day off." Ignoring Misaki's presence completely, he strode back to the dorm rooms, taking long purposeful strides. Upon reaching, he quickly made his way to his room and slammed the door shut behind him. Not bothering to shrug off his coat, he collapsed on the lower bunk in his room.

A sigh escaped his lips and his mind shut down and he completely passed out once more.

* * *

Saruhiko was fine.

As Misaki skateboarded his way back to HOMRA, he felt relief wash over him.

Saruhiko was _fine_.

A bit pale, unsteady on his feet but over all _he was fine_.

Misaki didn't know whether he wanted to laugh or cry or somehow manage both.

Kicking the ground beneath him to gain more speed, he smiled wryly.

Of course he'd still be worried about that's shitty asshole. After everything that bastard did to him, he still felt obligated to go and check up on him knowing full well that had the situation been reversed, the monkey wouldn't have even cared if he died.

A chuckle left his lips.

Maybe he was really as big of an idiot as Saruhiko made him out to be.

Passing a random house, he suddenly felt a jolt of nostalgia as he stared at the house looming ahead. Gulping, he looked away and skated as fast as he could, trying to put as much distance in between him and the mansion which had seemed cold even on the hottest days of July. Feeling an unfamiliar gaze watching him, he slowed down and cast one last look at the place which was still standing so proud and cold, even after all the years that passed by.

Hah. Like owner like house.

His eyes flickered to the balcony of the second floor and his eyes widened drastically. There, standing in the shadows, was a figure, looking straight at him.

Their eyes met.

With a shudder, he quickly jumped on his skateboard and all but fled in the opposite direction.

* * *

Hibisha: Please don't kill me. My brain already hurts from typing out this monstrosity. I mean, I'm not exactly against short worded texts and use them occasionally but typing out this chapter killed me. Too horrible. Anyways, wohoo! People actually are enjoying this story! I didn't expect that. I really didn't. So thank you to everyone who has the patience to wait for an update and also managed to wade through this chapter.

Also:

 **RedAvenger:** Yata Minoru. (if anyone was still unaware.)  
 **BlueGazel** : Suzuno Fuusuke  
 **Yata'sGURL707** : Kino Sayuri  
 **CR ZyLUn Tic:** Karino Tadashi  
 **SevenSeasAcross** : Yumi Mei  
 **RainbowMonkeyLovesYou** : Maki Asuza.

RAINBOWMONKEYLOVESYOU! OMG I HAVE NO IDEA I JUST GAVE OUT THE NAME BEFORE I REALISED WTF! I STARTED LAUGHING SO HARD! I SWEAR IT WAS PURELY COINCIDENTAL!

*dodges 7 million knives* I SWEAR SARU IT WAS A PURE COINCIDENT!


	5. Chapter 04: Trust

Sorry for the long wait guys. I was busy with my entries for the Sarumi Fest and also that small spin off series that came be due to that. But now I've cleaned up a bit and am back with an update. A really long update. I might also take long with the next one because my exams are once more around the corner and I need to pass these. *makes a face*

Anyways, enjoy this very weird chapter. And when I mean weird I'm talking "I-was-high-on-air" weird.

* * *

 **"Chapter 04: Trust"**

"You want me to do what?" Fushimi gave his Captain a look of pure incredulity, hoping, wishing, _begging_ the Gods that the older man was pulling his leg as he gently slid a puzzle piece into place. Munakata gave him a serene smile.

"I wish you wouldn't shout Fushimi-kun. Kai gets frightened easily." Which was, of course true in most cases except that Kai had attached himself to Fushimi's leg and didn't seem to be scared in the slightest when the older had shouted. In fact, had clung in harder.

Children. Annoying as fuck.

Fushimi wondered why they existed in the first place.

Still, he allowed the timid boy to latch onto his pants as he glared at his superior officer. The three of them were standing in Munakata's office. Well, Fushimi and Kai were standing - Munakata was just sitting in his throne like chair doing exactly what he always did when ever Fushimi came around - puzzles instead of the mountains of paperwork that had needed to be sorted through by _tomorrow_.

The Blue King _really_ liked pushing his luck.

And Fushimi's nerves.

Like he was doing now.

By asking him, Fushimi Saruhiko, to take his nephew out to the _amusement park_.

"Are you telling me I can't go on the raid to go save Ann-the red clansman from Mihashira tower?" He asked, gritting his teeth together. Munakata didn't respond immediately but took his sweet time holding up another piece and examining it before placing it calmly before him. Then his violet orbs met Fushimi's blue ones.

"That is correct, Fushimi-kun." He replied, still looking lax and calm, "I wouldn't have bothered you with this but you seemed just right for the job – as always. I wouldn't trust anyone else with such a mission." _Trust_. Something inside him began to coil up like a snake, rearing it's ugly head, getting ready to – do something. Anything. Fushimi glanced briefly at the little parasite like attachment clutching for dear life at his leg and looked back up at his boss.

"I don't know a fucking thing about taking care of-"

"Also, you are still weak from what happened recently, are you not? Lieutenant Awashima tells me you refuse to get bed rest. Take this as an order from me and go out with Kai to where he wants to go." _Ah_ _, so that was it._

Of course.

One failure and he was already being thrown away.

Gritting his teeth, he looked at his King through narrowed slits in his eyes, trying to keep his emotions in check.

"Okay Captain, I'll see to-"

"Kai has asked for you himself after all." Munakata added, seemingly very pleased with fact his nephew had picked his favorite subordinate. Before Fushimi could snap back with a rude remark, a small tug on his coat made him look down into a pair of purple orbs which were quivering.

"Ko-chan, _please._ "

Fuck the entire Munakata family to hell.

* * *

"Okay look brat." Fushimi said, glaring at the boy standing with him, "Your uncle is clearly a sadistic piece of shit who likes to throw his weight around and abuse his position as a superior officer to make his subordinates miserable." Kai looked up at him shyly, still not letting go of the hem of his jacket. Once or twice his eyes would scan the surrounding area as if searching for someone but then they'd drift back at him. Saruhiko clicked his tongue.

"Now not only am I stuck babysitting you for the rest of the day, I have to make sure you don't die on my watch. So here are the rules: one, and I can not believe I'm saying this, you have to stick close at all times. Two, do not, I repeat not, take anything a creepy man or woman offers you. Now I know having Captain as your uncle might have warped your sense of weird and creepy but your uncle is _not_ normal." Kai nodded his head, indicating he knew just what he was saying. Fushimi rolled his eyes and glared at the random passersbys who were out with their families having fun.

Oh how he loathed them all.

Especially that annoying group of teenage girls that kept pointing in their direction and giggling. He directed his attention back to the young boy who was still casting his eyes about.

"Three, no going off on your own-"

"But I want to hang out with my friend alone." The words were uttered so softly, Fushimi would have talked right over them had he not paused to take a breath. Kai was staring at the ground, shuffling his feet, blushing. Blushing. Friend. Alone. Not _friends_. Friend. _One_ friend. Singular. Who was special.

Oh fuck, this complicated things.

Munakata Reisi had not given him any words on what to do to play _cupid_ dammit!

Fushimi narrowed his eyes at the younger boy who was keeping his eyes fixed on the ground. Clicking his tongue, he shoved his hands in his pockets, reminding himself, for the umpteenth time, that he was dealing with a child.

Not an adult he could just flip off.

"Look," he began nervously, hesitant so as not to scare the kid, "I promised your uncle-"

"He doesn't have to know!" The response came so quick that Fushimi was momentarily taken aback. Violet eyes stared up at him, shinning brightly, pleadingly asking him to turn the cheek this one time. Fushimi felt torn.

On one hand, Kai was his responsibility and as much as he usually ran from it, he couldn't abandon a 11 year old on his own. On the other hand, Kai was clearly very sure about this. Gritting his teeth as he came to a final decision, he stared at the boy evenly.

"You'll keep your PDA on at all time." he said flatly. Kai nodded eagerly, dark hair flopping into his eyes. Fushimi folded his arms. "You'll call the second it even begins to feel like trouble is near." Was it just him or did Kai actually hesitate before agreeing? Oh well, he agreed right? Besides, 11 wasn't _all that_ young. When he had been at that age, he had been fairly adept at keeping himself out of trouble. "Finally, I'm still in this same amusement park so you're not leaving." Seeing the boy agree, he stooped down to his eye level and stared straight into the other's eyes. "I mean it. I'm activating your GPS." Pulling out his own PDA, he made a rough parameter around the maps he had pulled up and pressed a few more options, "The minute you step outside this circle, I'll know and I'm gonna make sure you're grounded for life so no more meeting this _friend_ of yours."

"Okay. Thanks Ko-chan!" Kai mumbled out, giving him the smallest smile. Fushimi cursed his luck.

If only all his enemies knew all it took for him to bow down was a child. He'd be wiped out of existence.

He watched as Kai ran among the crowd, disappearing from sight, clearly knowing where he was going to meet his friend.

"Is it really a good idea to let a kid that small go off on his own?" He whirled around to find himself face to face with a-

-fucking large cloud of pink cotton candy.

Brown eyes peered from around it and gave him a wide Cheshire cat grin.

"Hey!" It was the mystery woman who had lodged herself in his old home. Just great.

This day just kept getting worse and worse.

Turning around, he walked away from her only to have her follow him, babbling incessantly about meaningless things.

"About that kid, wasn't he way too young? Was he your younger brother? He looked a bit like you, you know gloomy but his eyes were different – kinder. Not that you don't look kind...okay you really don't but you get my point. Do you know there are some pretty weird people out here? Some pretty sick fucks you know. Also, he's like what 8 years old? How could you just let him go off on his own? What if he gets lost and his PDA gets stolen? You didn't even bother asking him who his friend was! What if someone tries to kidnap him and rape him and make videos of him to sell on the internet? What if-"

"Shut up." he growled out, turning to give her his most lethal glare, the one he usually reserved for Domyoji or Hidaka when they were being extra annoying. She didn't bat at eye or even halt in her useless tirade of pointless outcomes that were probably never going to happen in a million years.

"And what if he gets crushed under the Ferris wheel? WHAT IF THE LEPRECHAUNS KIDNAP HIM?" That made him halt in his steps and give the obviously crazy weirdo a look of pure incredulity. One glance at her and he could see she was dead serious, her eyes gleaming with sincerity. She believed it. She actually believed some leprechauns were coming to kidnap Kai.

Un _fucking_ believable.

"Leprechauns?" He drawled out, in the most condescending tone he had kept on reserve, "What are you, three? They don't exis-" The rest of his words were cut of as the cotton candy hit the ground, both of the owner's hand slapped onto Fushimi's mouth.

"Don't!" she hissed out, glaring at him in an obviously reprimanding manner, "They might hear you and attack!" His eyes narrowed as he jumped away from her as if her hands had burnt him.

"Don't touch me, you freak!" He spat out, daring her to get close again as he slid a knife out from his sleeve. He saw her eyes widen as she ogled at him, tilting her head a bit.

Then she fucking _smiled_.

"I see!" She clapped her hands together, looking relieved, "You're armed. That's good! The lepre-"

"Go the fuck away." He growled, eyeing her dangerously. She held up her hands in mock surrender. For the first time, Fushimi took a good look at her. Her brown hair was streaked with a hideously bright orange that hadn't been there last time he saw her. Her halter top was an even more gaudy shade of orange with a neon green miniskirt and brown cowboy boot. He could see the teenage girls from before pointing and snickering at her appearance.

Fushimi didn't altogether blame them.

She looked like an overgrown flower.

She must have caught him looking at the other girls because she quickly glanced in their direction as well. A wry smile crossed her lips and she turned back to give him a quick wave.

"Well then, your fan club seems to be annoyed by me." She said, walking backwards, "I'll be...around I guess. The name's Mizuki! Mamoru Mizuki! I'll be seeing you later then." Turning on her heels, she began to walk away.

Tsk.

"Fushimi." He muttered out, not sure if his voice even made it to where she was, but it must have because she turned to look at him inquisitively, "Fushimi Saruhiko." Mizuki tilted his head as her eyes brightened.

Then she fucking _bounded back to his side_.

Oh God, you'd think he'd have learnt from his mistakes by now.

Idiots would always be idiots.

 _"And she's probably going to make fun of your name now."_ A vicious voice muttered inside his head whispered. He ignored it and focused on the weirdly grown houseplant hybrid human in front of him. Mizuki grinned.

"So...'hiko' as in 'prince'? That's so awesome! You even look a bit like a prince all smug and royal and snooty but you know, not all that snooty. Also, Fushimi? Like the Fushimi Inari shrine one? Are you related to the Gods? I mean, you look heavenly but damn I didn't think you were actually an angel or something!" Fushimi stared at her baffled.

"What?" He managed to get out because _what in actual fuck_? She waved her hands about, now completely ignoring the group of girls who were now glaring at her. It suddenly occurred to Fushimi that the only reason they were probably keeping away from him was because of Mizuki.

...that was a very depressing thought...

"I read it somewhere you know, don't test my knowledge." She was on it again, her one sided rants which left Fushimi in a bit of a daze in order to keep up, "I don't know where though. Although I guess the kanji could be different. I'm not all that good at kanji so I wouldn't know." Fushimi clicked his tongue.

"Fushimi is just my family name and Saruhiko...is something my...father thought would be funny." He said, not all together quite sure why he was explaining his name to a random stranger.

A stranger who had taken care of him.

Mizuki shrugged and fell silent.

 _Fi_ _nally_ _._

Turning around, he began to make his way away from her, looking for somewhere nice and cool where he could silently work on his PDA until it was time for him to go home.

Munakata Reisi owed him a fucking raise.

"Hey." Against his better judgment, he paused and glanced over his shoulder. Mizuki stood there, looking a bit forlorn. "Do you...mind if...I kind of tagged along?" Her mouth twisted in a rueful smile, "I've been hanging out all day by myself and it kind of sucks you know." He stared at her once more. Really? Could she not tell he did not even want to breathe the same air as her? She must have read the look on his face because she shrugged.

"Oh...I see. Never mind, continue on your way." He sighed.

"I don't mind it." He muttered quietly, his eyes trained on the girls who were _still watching them_ , "Just...try to shut up." Mizuki opened her mouth but one glare from him and she nodded, pretending to zip her lips shut. Digging his hands in his pockets, he looked around.

When was the last time he had been here?

Oh yeah – when Anna wanted to go that one time.

"So what do you want to do?" He asked her bleakly. _Ju_ _st_ _one time,_ he promised himself, _On_ _e_ _time and then I'll never see her face again._ She grinned.

"Well since you look like the type to hate rides how about we go towards the stalls?"

"...whatever..."

As they walked off in the direction of the multiple useless games that the park had as an attraction, Fushimi spied on Mizuki walking next to him.

The girl carried herself with grace, not brushing against anyone who came in her way. She would gently make way for them and slide around them as if she was dancing circles around them. Fushimi wanted to comment but he decided against it.

It was none of his business.

The minute they reached the stalls, Mizuki turned to him and pointed towards a stupid game with rings.

"That one." She said, eyes shining anew with a hidden challenge. He looked at her with the most bored look he had.

"Fine." She smiled and began to walk towards it. The crowd in that area was much _much_ less, clearly people more attracted by the food and multiple rides. Mizuki held up the four rings and tossed them one after the other. Three out of four. A small grumble escaped her lips as she was handed a smaller gift than what she was aiming for. Fushimi couldn't help it as a smug smirk crossed his features, him tossing, one, two, three, all four rings right on target. He didn't even want the large teddy bear that was handed to him but the look on the girl's face was worth it.

After than it was on.

Mizuki dragged him along to every single one of the stalls, competing against him, losing against him but overall winning games and odd trinkets.

Of course she was going to lose, she was challenging _him_ on _target_ games. Was she plain stupid?

Oh wait.

"And here's is your prize." The man behind what seemed like the 20th booth announced, handing them another stuffed dog – the fourth one of the evening – and Mizuki stuffed it inside the large bag she was carrying filled with useless items that came straight from the flee market.

"LOOK FUSHIMI, IT'S A FORTUNE TELLER! LOOK OVER THERE! LET'S GO, IT LOOKS AWESOME!"

Fushimi looked in the direction where she was pointing and was surprised she even noticed the tent there. It was a little bit further down the path and one wouldn't notice it unless one looked for it specifically. He gave the place a skeptical look. Like most fortune tellers, the place was set up gypsy style in a tent made of cloth both blood red and black. Something that added to the mystery he guessed.

Once they reached it, Fushimi realized they were the only two people there.

Well, that wasn't foreboding _at all_.

Lifting the draped covering the entrance, they were greeted by a circular room lit up by scented candles. A small table covered with a deep purple tablecloth had with a crystal ball sitting on a cushion in the middle.

Typical.

Fushimi looked around once more before he rolled his eyes.

"There's no one here." Mizuki seemed a bit put out.

"Don't be too sure of that." Fushimi's eyes darted up as a figure materialized out of the shadows in front of them. The old woman gave them a toothless smile, her eyes giving off a bit of a glow and suddenly Fushimi couldn't wait to leave. The whole thing was starting to give him the creeps.

"Ah-what can I do for you youngsters?" she rasped out, hobbling over to seat herself across the table from them. Even though it was clear Mizuki was the gullible idiot who had come to this stupid thing, Fushimi couldn't help but notice that the woman was staring right at him. "Maybe something to ward of those evil spirits wandering around? Or something to wash away all that red? Perhaps a amulet to be understood?" Fushimi scowled deeply, his body going stiff as his mouth turned dry, feeling highly uncomfortable in the stuffy room.

"Mizuki let's leave."

Mizuki looked between the two of them, at the clear signs of the tension brewing and thankfully chose not comment.

Or didn't notice it.

That was highly probable too.

She shrugged and began to back away only for the woman to reach out quick at lightning speed and wrapped her bony fingers around Mizuki's wrists, who went still as a statue, as if frozen in fear. Her smile became strained before she slightly tugged at her hand, trying to get away but the old woman was clearly not as frail as she seemed.

"Ah-auntie, won't you let go?" Pale gray eyes had drifted from Fushimi to the brunette in front of her, who's eyes were now clearly very politely telling the woman to unhand her. The toothless grin disappeared only to be replaced by a grim look.

"You're different." came a hushed whisper and any failed attempts at a smile Mizuki was pulling were wiped off her face as a blank look settled in and with a hard jerk, she freed her hand from the vice like grip.

"Thanks." came a flat reply. Fushimi raised an eyebrow. The woman gave them a long hard look before she reached out again and Mizuki reeled back, shrinking away from the touch by taking couple of steps back but this time the woman just held out a pair of silver charm bracelets.

"A pretty pair for the pretty pair." she cackled and Fushimi didn't even have the strength to point out they were not a pair. He wondered if he was wearing a sign screaming, 'All freaks welcomed to talk to me.' It would explain Mizuki. And this old woman. And Munakata.

Mizuki was eyeing them warily. The old woman nodded.

"Go ahead." she rasped, "It's free of cost. You two might find yourself liking them in the future." Fushimi's eyes narrowed. Was this woman a strain?

Mizuki approached the small table again and reached out, snatching the bracelets and quickly stepping away once more.

It only confirmed what Fushimi had deduced before.

Mizuki did not like people touching her. Period.

The two of them hastily bid the old lady farewell as they emerged from her humble abode and stood facing each other, visibly taking large gulps of fresh air which felt heavenly after being nearly suffocated by the smell of heavy incense that had been inside.

Hurrying away, Mizuki avoided his eye as she made her way back towards the crowded part of the park. Fushimi cast one last look back at the drapes separating him and the strange lady who's eyes had strangely glowed a bit when they had been making their quick departure, before he followed, hands buried deep in his jacket's pockets and his body feeling colder than it did an hour ago.

* * *

"Well..." Mizuki seemed to have bounced back from her earlier transgressions and gave him a wide grin. She held up the bracelets to observe them under the fairy lights that had gone up, as the sky had begun to streak red and orange with traces of blue mixed in as it all faded into a hazy purple. Fushimi wondered if it was time he called Kai back yet.

He should. The sooner he did, the sooner he could leave the place.

The bracelets were not as weird as he had expected them to be and were identical to each other.

Two simple silver chains intricately wounded together to form a circular shape. There, hanging from the middle was a small pale white stone which gleamed beneath the lights.

It was upon closer look that Fushimi realized that no, they were not identical because each stone had two different words etched into it.

' _Trust_.'

' _Love_.'

Mizuki gave him a sheepish look.

"I'm guessing you wouldn't want the 'love' one." she concluded, holding out one of them to him, "So you can have trust okay? It sort of fits you too I guess." She gave him a radiating smile. "You're someone I can trust I guess." Fushimi's blood ran cold and a callous laugh began to itch itself past his throat, which he didn't bother holding in. Trust. Fushimi felt something inside him snap.

"I don't want your fucking trust." he sneered out, snatching the jewelry away and marching over to the nearest trash can, "The only place this piece of shit belongs is in the trash." Chuckling darkly, he whirled on his feet and began to march off, fully intending on finding Kai and hauling his ass out of there.

Fuck this, it wasn't worth the extra cash.

He missed the way inquisitive brown eyes blinked at his retreating back, head tilted. Had he looked back just once, he'd have seen the way the girl silently approached the trash can and fished out the bracelet, slipping it in her pocket.

"Watch out for the evil leprechauns!"

That's when a loud explosion shattered the quiet around them and all hell broke loose.

* * *

Well then I'll be back with another chapter later! Review!


	6. Chapter 05 - Flames

I AM SO SO SO SORRY!

I've actually been struggling to write for quite some time now. Everything is very hard for me and life had been...tedious. And that's me using nice words. So my inspiration to write has been quite pathetic. It took everything in me to write this and update.

To all those wonderful people who are still reading this, thank you. It means a lot. Especially since I know I'm not really good at regular updates. Please bear with me. v.v

* * *

 **Chapter 05 - Flames**

"What was that!?" Mizuki's head turned to face the source of the explosion at the same time as Fushimi started running, pulling out his cellphone, following the red dot which blinked right at the epicenter of the park.

 _Kai!_

Fuck, Munakata was going to kill him. Fushimi shoved aside the feeling of dread which was slowly consuming him on the inside in favor of keeping a cool head. _Logical, you're the logical one_. He reminded himself, pushing through the crown running in the opposite direction. The mass hysteria which surrounded him, people shoving each other, trying to make their way away from the burning Ferris wheel which was swaying where it stood, looking right on the verge of collapse.

"KAI!" looking around, standing at the exact spot where his tracker showed the child to be, he looked around, rubble surrounding him. A piece of melted plastic, still on fire fell right in front of him from above and he activated his shield around himself to keep himself safe. Spotting a few civilians trapped in the blazing inferno, he sent out a wave of blue aura, clearing out a path for them to run to safety.

No signs of the kid though.

Blue eyes scanned the surrounding once more. Just as he was about to head off in another direction, another explosion sounded off right near the stalls where he had been previously. Cursing under his breath, he once again looked at his cellphone and realized a small error on his part.

The mark was moving.

Fast.

Towards the exit.

 _The kid's safe..._

Hoping against hope that Kai would manage to keep clam enough to call the Captain for help, Fushimi darted towards the source of the other explosion, using both colored auras to help anyone who he saw trapped. Everything around them was on flames, burning higher and higher.

Sensing a presence on his left, he turned sharply just barely avoiding a blade which cleaved the air in the space he had just occupied in two. pulling out two knives from his harness he let them sail without even thinking twice. A sharp noise of metal clashing against metal made him look up.

"Fushimi Saruhiko, third in command, Scepter 4." a cocky voice called out and he narrowed his eyes at the man who had almost ended his life. Short dark hair, smug green eyes and dressed in what Fushimi could only assume was supposed to be an intimidating manner, he was precariously balanced on top of a lamppost.

"What's it to you?" he asked sounding almost bored even though his eyes scanned the surrounding, trying to detect any other source of life in their immediate vicinity. Pulling out another set of knives from his sleeves, palming them in his hands, he mentally wondered if Kai had managed to reach safety. The cold metal felt reassuring against his heated skin and he let them sail once more, watching blankly as they were easily deflected by a katana that the man was carrying. The brunette laughed, teeth flashing almost charmingly.

"Don't you want to know who I am though~" The sing song voice gated on his nerves and Fushimi raised an eyebrow.

"I don't bother learning the names of road kill, thanks." He responded, letting more knives fly in the air. The man jumped down from where he had been perched and landed gracefully on his feet. Grinning ferally, he raised his hand and Fushimi watched in absolute shock as the red aura engulfed the arm, flames dancing up and down the whole length, licking the skin but not harming its user.

"You're part of HOMRA?" Try hard as he might, he couldn't keep the incredulity out of his voice before something else clicked. "No, no you're not. You're a strain." The grin on the other's face widened and Fushimi had a slip second's warning before he was assaulted by a huge wall of fire, engulfing him in a world of red and heat.

Blue aura immediately shot out of his body, responding involuntarily against its natural enemy. The small amount of time he was blinded by the flames was enough for the man though. Looking around, Fushimi couldn't detect him anywhere and felt his already bad mood drop exponentially. A small flutter of white caught his eyes and he reached out to grab hold of the paper drifting in the air. Staring the words on it, he cursed every God that ever existed.

 _Be careful of the ghosts._

* * *

"Fushimi kun!" Awashima Seri rushed onto the site of the attack and immediately felt her heart sigh in relief. He was alright. They were alright. The young boy who was clutching onto the hem of the other's jacket immediately released his hold in favor of rushing to the bespectacled man climbing out of the wan behind the woman.

"Uncle!" Munakata crouched down and smiled at his nephew. Kai's arms went around his neck and Munakata stood up, holding the child in his rms.

"Fushimi kun," he said pleasantly, "I'm glad you look fine if not, pardon my choice of words, a bit burnt out." Awashima's eyes went to the younger man who shrugged.

"Strain. He's the one who caused the explosions I guess."

Violet eyes flashed with keen interest as a hand came up to adjust his glasses on his face.

"You guess? You're not sure?" Fushimi shrugged again and for the first time since they arrived, Awashima realized he was slightly swaying where he stood, looking positively drained.

"I didn't actually see him cause any one of the explosions with my own eyes." He muttered. "The press was here moments ago and I covered it up as an electronical disaster. But yes, back to that strain, he was-"

"I expect a full report on my desk tomorrow afternoon Fushimi kun." Munakata cut him off, still smiling pleasantly. For now, you should head off to the doctor to get yourself checked and then go to bed. You look like you're about to fall unconscious again any given moment." The younger scowled darkly and Awashima shot him a disproving glare. Munakata tipped his head and then set his nephew down.

"Awashima kun."

"Yes Captain?"

"Keep an eye on this stubborn child." Eyes glittered mischievously, "And keep an eye on Kai as well." Her lips twitched and she glanced in the direction of her subordinate who was glaring at the Captain's retreating back as if mentally sending a rain of knives down pouring onto him. Reaching out, she set an arm on the other's shoulder.

"Come along Fushimi kun." Her tone was clipped and business like but the man seemed to relax under her touch none the less.

"And what happened to the mission you guys were-"

"There will be time to discuss everything on the way to the infirmary Fushimi kun." She said, firmly leading both him and Kai away from the entrance of the amusement park. Or what was left of it anyways. Fushimi made a small sound of discontent but that was the only form of resistance she encountered. Making their way to the car, she held the door open for both of them to get in before climbing in the front, sitting next to one of the members of the clan who was in charge of driving.

"Akiyama san, back to headquarters if you please." The shorter man gave her a quick nod before pulling out of the driveway. Awashima watched as the young man in the back seat slumped a bit, looking positively drained. Kai on the other hand, looked feverish, eyes wide and shining with excitement. Every five seconds or so, he would glance at his phone and type out something, a huge smile plastered on his face. Catching Fushimi's eyes, she received a roll of eyes.

"Did you two have fun?" Was it just her imagination or did both of them freeze a bit at that comment. Before she could comment on it however, Kai threw himself at Fushimi.

"Yes, we had lots of fun. We went and ate a lot of sweets and Saruhiko let me ride anything I wanted."

"Didn't he get on with you?"

"Motion sickness." Fushimi mumbled out. The two youngest in the van made eye contact and for a minute Awashima was sure there was something the two were keeping for all of them. Shoving it in the back of her mind, she sighed.

"Well its good you two-" The rest of her words were drowned in the sound of a huge explosion to their immediate right threw the van off course. Holding onto the seat tightly, she waited for Akiyama to swerve the van sharply, and pull it to a stop. In the back seat, Fushimi immediately told Kai to stay with him. Clambering out, they all looked at the man standing in front of the burning inferno that had moments ago been a building.

"Homra?" Akiyama questioned, pulling out his cellphone to call in back up. Fushimi shook his head, eyes narrowed and his hand holding his knives again. Awashima put herself between him and the strain who was smirking. The raven haired man gave her a sharp tongue click.

"No, it's a strain again."

"Same one who attacked the amusement park?"

"Yes."

"I see." Awashima said before raising her voice, addressing the opposing party. "You have placed a direct attack against three officers of Scepter 4 – including an underage civilian. Surrender yourself or you will be cut down." The man lazily sent back a fireball back as a response. Awashima nodded.

"Men! Prepare to engage in battle!" She called out, drawing out her sword. "Awashima, ready!" Next to her, Akiyama also drew out his saber and Fushimi readied himself in front of the child he was clearly supposed to protect. Before either Awashima or Akiyama could land a blow however, the man grinned and sent a huge burst of aura in their direction. Momentarily distracted, they closed their eyes from the heat even though they were protected by the blue aura surrounding them. The second was all it took for the strain to disappear.

"He…vanished?" Akiyama's voice was full of incredulity, not sure why the strain they were attacked by had just backed off. Awashima sent a puzzled look to the destruction around them. In the distance, they could the sounds of sirens going off and incoming firefighters.

"Something's not right." Fushimi mumbled out, putting away his knives and clicking his tongue. Glancing back at the kid he sighed in relief to see Kai hiding behind a large dumpster, phone grasped tightly in his hand.

"Ah Captain will have to talk this one out of trauma." Akiyama said, squatting down to pat Kai's head, who immediately latched onto him. Awashima nodded, looking up in time to see the rest of the squad cars arrive. Waving to Fushimi, she left Akiyama and Fushimi alone to go talk to some subordinated but not before leaving strict instructions that under no circumstances was Fushimi to be allowed to work without getting checked by the infirmary. Akiyama bowed low and smiled at Fushimi.

"Shall we go then?"

* * *

"So what do you think?" A figure watching from the rooftop approached the woman standing behind him, smirking. "Grand enough for you, babe?"

Brown narrowed eyes watched as the blue coats ran around below as they ran around in a dissray.

"It'll do for now."

* * *

 **JUNGLE NOTICE BOARD**

 **Congratulation!**

 **You are now G-rank!**

 **RedAvenger – G RANK – 654937 JUNGLE points**

 **BlackBird – G RANK – 765843 JUNGLE points**

 **Quests completed:**

 **Distract the security patrol at the amusement park! – 2000 JUNGLE points.**

 **Plant birds in marked places! (¾ complete) – 3000 JUNGLE points.**

 **PLEASE CONTINUE TO SUPPORT US!**

 **WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR NEXT CONQUEST!**

* * *

Well well well. I surprised myself **.**


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